Mission and Vision

Mission

The School of Dental Medicine of the University of Puerto Rico has, as its main mission, to train the dentists who will become an integral part of the multidisciplinary team of health professionals that will satisfy the needs of the people of Puerto Rico. It assumes the leadership regarding teaching and research on the prevailing conditions of oral health of the community.

The School of Dental Medicine, in the fulfillment of its mission, is committed with three complementary activities: teaching, research and service. Its teaching role is directed towards the development of a Doctoral program in Dental Medicine which will form a competent graduate in the practice of General Dentistry with critical thinking skills and bioethical sensibility to respond to the needs of his/her patients. This role is complemented by Postdoctoral Education Programs and a solid Continuing Education Program directed to dentists of Puerto Rico, the Caribbean Basin and Ibero-America.

As part of its mission, the School of Dentistry fosters the search of scientific knowledge and the improvement of the practice of the profession through research in dental sciences. Services are aimed at fostering the well-being of the patient and the community, and at strengthening academic programs, in addition to supporting the Institutions research efforts. These services are offered at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels, both intramurally and extramurally with particular attention to prevention and education.The development of the mission of the School of Dental Medicine is framed within an academic environment which promotes a high degree of respect towards human values and the attainment of social, ethical and economical progress of the human being of the present and of the future.

Vision

The School of Dental Medicine of the University of Puerto Rico is a leading academic institution and a predoctoral and postdoctoral Dental Education Center for Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, and Ibero-America. It is a teaching center that promotes the development of intellectually inquisitive students, geared towards self-learning, sensitive to the needs of their patients and competent in his/her profession. It is committed to respond promptly to the internal and external demands in order to become a transforming agent of its environment, with emphasis in the solution of the oral health needs of the Puerto Rican population as an integral component of the health of the individual. The School is responsible for fostering the development of new knowledge and alternative models for the rendering of services.